Short Description

Article IV Legislative Department in the Philippines...

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3 BRANCHES of the GOVERNMENT

LEGISLATIVE

EXECUTIVE

JUDICIARY

Principle of SEPARATION OF POWERS - each government branch is not permitted to encroach upon the powers confided to others. Arbitrary rule would result if the same body is to exercise all the powers of the government.

Principle of CHECKS AND BALANCES - authorizing a considerable amount of encroachment or checking by one branch in the affairs of the others. Each branch is given certain powers with which to check the others.   

Pres.may disapprove bills enacted by Congress Congress may reject appointments by the Pres. Judiciary may declare unconstitutional laws enacted by the Congress

ARTICLE VI

Legislative Department

SECTION 1. The legislative power shall be vested in the Congress of the Philippines which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives ….

Legislative Power - power to make laws, and subsequently, to alter and repeal them

SECTION 2. The Senate shall be composed of twentyfour Senators…

SECTION 3. No person shall be a Senator unless he is a natural-born citizen of the Philippines, and, on the day of the election, is at least thirty-five years of age, able to read and write, a registered voter, and a resident of the Philippines for not less than two years immediately preceding the day of the election.

SECTION 4. The term of office of the Senators shall be six years … No Senator shall serve for more than two consecutive terms. Voluntary renunciation of the office for any length of time shall not be considered as an interruption in the continuity of his service for the full term for which he was elected.

SECTION 5. (1) The House of Representatives shall be composed of not more than two hundred and fifty members… who shall be elected from legislative districts … (2) The party-list representatives shall constitute twenty per centum of the total number of representatives …labor, peasant, urban poor, indigenous cultural communities, women, youth, and such other sectors as may be provided by law..

2 kinds of members of House of Representatives 1.) District Representative – elected directly and personally from the territorial unit he is seeking to represent. 2.) Party-list Representative – chosen indirectly, through the party he represents, which is the one voted for by the electorate. This is to give an opportunity to weak sectors to have their voices heard.

SECTION 6. No person shall be a Member of the House of Representatives unless he is a naturalborn citizen of the Philippines and, on the day of the election, is at least twenty-five years of age, able to read and write, and, except the party-list representatives, a registered voter in the district in which he shall be elected, and a resident thereof for a period of not less than one year immediately preceding the day of the election.

SECTION 7. The Members of the House of Representatives shall be elected for a term of three years … No member of the House of Representatives shall serve for more than three consecutive terms…

SECTION 11. A Senator or Member of the House of Representatives shall, in all offenses punishable by not more than six years imprisonment, be privileged from arrest while the Congress is in session. No Member shall be questioned nor be held liable in any other place for any speech or debate in the Congress or in any committee thereof.

FREEDOM from ARREST  offenses punishable by not more than six years imprisonment  while Congress is in session FREEDOM of SPEECH and DEBATE  remarks must be made in connection with the discharge of official duties.  while Congress is in session

Reason for the congressional privileges… To enable members of Congress to discharge their functions adequately and without fear. It is true that the privileges may be abused. However, the harm which would come from its abuse is considered slight compared to that which might arise if the privileges were not given.

SECTION 12. All Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives shall, upon assumption of office, make a full disclosure of their financial and business interests… They shall notify the House concerned of a potential conflict of interest that may arise from the filing of a proposed legislation of which they are authors.

SECTION 13. No Senator or Member of the House of Representatives may hold any other office or employment in the Government…during his term without forfeiting his seat. Neither shall he be appointed to any office which may have been created or the emoluments thereof increased during the term for which he was elected.

INCOMPATIBLE OFFICE Office which mat not be held by a member of a Congress outside the legislative department. There is a need for members to devote their time and attention to the discharge of their legislative responsibilities.

FORBIDDEN OFFICE Office which a member of a Congress may not be a beneficiary by reason of being a participant when said office was created. Hence, a member of Congress shall not be eligible for appointment to such office even if he resigns.

SECTION 15. The Congress shall convene once every year on the fourth Monday of July for its regular session, …and shall continue to be in session for such number of days as it may determine until thirty days before the opening of its next regular session, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. The President may call a special session at any time.

SECTION 16. (1) The Senate shall elect its President and the House of Representatives its Speaker, by a majority vote of all its respective Members. (2) A majority of each House shall constitute a quorum to do business…

(3) Each House may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two-thirds of all its Members, suspend or expel a Member. A penalty of suspension, when imposed, shall not exceed sixty days. (4) Each House shall keep a Journal of its proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such parts as may, in its judgment, affect national security…

QUORUM - a number of membership which is competent to transact its business; is at least one-half plus one of the members of a body. LEGISATIVE JOURNAL - the official record of what is done and passed in a legislative assembly and the proceedings occurred from day to day.

SECTION 17. The Senate and the House of Representatives shall each have an Electoral Tribunal which shall be the sole judge of all contests relating to the election, returns, and qualifications of their respective Members…

SECTION 18. There shall be a Commission on Appointments… shall act on all appointments submitted to it…

SECTION 21. The Senate or the House of Representatives or any of its respective committees may conduct inquiries in aid of legislation in accordance with its duly published rules of procedure. The rights of persons appearing in or affected by such inquiries shall be respected.

SECTION 26. No bill passed by either House shall become a law unless it has passed three readings on separate days, and printed copies thereof in its final form have been distributed to its Members three days before its passage… Upon the last reading of a bill, no amendment thereto shall be allowed, and the vote thereon shall be taken immediately thereafter, and the yeas and nays entered in the Journal.

Steps in the Passage of a Bill First Reading - reading of the number, title of the measure and name of the author Second Reading - the bill is read in its entirety, scrutinized , debated upon and amended when desired Third Reading - members merely register their votes and explain them. No further debate is allowed.

SECTION 27. Every bill passed by the Congress shall, before it becomes a law, be presented to the President. If he approves the same, he shall sign it; otherwise, he shall veto it and return the same with his objections to the House where it originated, which shall enter the objections at large in its Journal and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, twothirds of all the Members of such House shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent…to the other House by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two-thirds of all the Members of that House, it shall become a law… The President shall communicate his veto of any bill to the House where it originated within thirty days after the date of receipt thereof; otherwise, it shall become a law as if he had signed it.

3 ways when a bill may become a law 1.) When the President approves the bill by signing it. 2.) When the President vetoes the bill and the same is overriden by 2/3 votes of all the members of both Houses. 3.) When the President does not communicate his veto within 30 days after the date of receipt.